Curse of the Spider Lily
by Yukimenoko
Summary: Our fellow APH cast members are taking a vacation at France's private vacation home on a remote island. Little do they know that they won't be leaving anytime soon and will soon uncover the mysteries of the island.
1. Chapter 1

Oh my...a new fanfic after two years of slumbering hiatus?

Don't fail me this time imagination!

Also, keep in mind that the characters will use their human names.

* * *

**Title:** [APH] Curse of the Spider Lily

**Summary:** Our fellow APH cast members are taking a vacation at France's private vacation home on a remote island. Little do they know that they won't be leaving anytime soon and will soon uncover the mysteries of the island.**  
**  
**Warning:** There will be pairings which includes...

GERxITA

SPAMANO

USxUK

FRAxJEA (Jeanne d'Arc)

ROCHU

HOLLxJPN (Holland)

PRUxHUN

DENxNOR

* * *

**Chapter 1: Welcome…**

"…Oh, Ludwig, is that the manor over there?" the young Italian pointed at a lone island from over the boat's rail. The blond muscular German looked over the horizon with his blue eyes and nodded. The Italian let out an amazed sigh as the sea breeze played with his brown hair, his curl fluttering in the wind, "It was nice of Francis to let all of us come over to his vacation house!"

"Yeah but you never know what that pervert might do," Ludwig mumbled as he looked over his shoulder to see the Frenchman looking at the island in the distance. He seemed to have a troubled look on his face before heading into the yacht's cabin.

"…Something…seems wrong," Feliciano suddenly said the longer he stared at the island. He then looked at Ludwig, "Something's wrong with that island…" Ludwig was feeling uneasy. It wasn't like Feliciano or Francis to be out of characters this early. He wrapped his arm around the Italian and led him into the cabin where everyone else was.

"So, Francis, when did you have an island to yourself?" the Englishman asked as he raised his large eyebrow, setting his teacup down on the table that everyone was sitting around. Francis shrugged and sighed.

"Honestly, my boss just reminded me about it since I haven't been there in so long, but isn't it nice to have a few days away from work?" he then laughed, holding his wineglass up in the air.

"…This better be worth it," the Englishman scoffed as he leaned on the American's shoulder next to him.

"C'mon Arthur, if you think about it, when was the last time we all had a vacation?" the American smiled. Arthur grimaced and muttered something under his breath, crossing his arms. They forgot everyone doesn't know—or rather, almost everyone—that both of them are lovers. Everyone stared at them as Arthur was leaning on Alfred's shoulder and immediately sat straight and looked away. The Hungarian girl was giggling.

"What are you giggling about, Elizabeta?" the albino man sitting next to her asked, regretting that he talked to her. She glared at him as he flinched, hoping that she didn't have a frying pan on her.

"What, I can't laugh, Gilbert?" Elizabeta sneered, "I can't believe Roderich bailed on us on the last minute!" Elizabeta and Roderich used to be married but had a divorce due to their boss but the two are still romantically linked as boyfriend and girlfriend, much to Gilbert's dismay. The German—excuse me—Prussian was Elizabeta's childhood friend and rival but slowly began to like her despite telling himself that he would avoid such things. Gilbert looked away as she mentioned Roderich's name.

"Well, he said his boss gave him more work at the last minute so it can't be helped," Ludwig remarked.

"Huh, same thing happened to Berwald and Tino," the tall Nordic said. He then turned towards a younger Nordic who seemed uninterested, "Right?"

"…Uh-huh…" he merely replied.

"Are we any near the island? I'm hungry," Feliciano's older brother retorted.

"Ahahaha, if you're hungry, do you want a tomato, Lovino?" the Spaniard next to him offered him as he pulled out a tomato from his backpack. Lovino quickly swiped it from his hand and nibbled on the red vegetable. "I have been wondering though, are we getting closer to the island, Francis?"

"We should be there in a few minutes," he smiled.

"I haven't been to a warm island before, I wonder how it's like, da?" the tall Russian smiled kindly but everyone fell dead silent and fidgeted, especially the Chinese man next to him.

"Aiya…I just want to eat now, aru," the Chinese man sighed. Food was always his top priority but he's always so miraculously skinny.

"Don't worry, I'll make some food once we get there, Wang," Francis said as the woman next to him was staring out the window, "What's wrong, Jeanne?"

"…It's nothing," she said before sitting back down. A young woman came in the cabin and bowed.

"We're almost at the island, Sir," she bowed again and left. Francis looked at everyone as they seemed busy talking to each other, wondering what's on the island.

* * *

As they all got off the yacht, they looked around, only seeing the island to be a majority of greenery and trees, a lone house sitting near the docks seemed to be the only sign of civilization on the island.

"…Is someone else here? I thought it was a private island," Antonio asked, eyeing the cottage.

"Oui, there's a small fisherman's family residing on the island—with Monsieur Francis' permission of course," Jeanne said as she looked at the house. Just as everyone looked, the door flew open, causing Feliciano to cling onto Ludwig's muscular arm in shock. An elderly man slowly came out with a large fishing net over his shoulder. His squinty eyes scrutinized everyone as he let out a faint smile under his large beard.

"Ah, it's been a while since you've been here, Monsieur Francis," the man said to Francis. He nodded and smiled in acknowledgement.

"Oui, je travaille beaucoup." He looked over his shoulder to the group behind him, "These are my friends; we're staying up at the vacation house for a couple of days."

The old man seemed to have frozen for a split second before smiling.

"Ah, bon—be careful going up there then!" he nodded and headed towards the docks, heaving the net out from the small cottage. As he slowly passed the group, Arthur was eyeing him. Something about that man made him feel uneasy about this whole vacation plan. Not only did he notice that he flinched when talking to the wine bastard but that he overheard Feliciano saying something about "feeling uneasy" to Ludwig during the boat ride. The British crossed his arms, contemplating as the American next to him looked at him, bewildered.

"…Something the matter, Arty?" Alfred asked with his usual joking smile. He received a dirty glare but Arthur sighed.

"…Who knows?"

* * *

Huh...well that was short...

Anyways, feel free to review!

More reviews means more updates!

Thank you sincerely!


	2. Chapter 2

Hmm...Sorry if I don't upload that much after this.

Busy with school work and all.

* * *

**Title:** Curse of the Spider Lily

**Summary:** Our fellow APH cast members are taking a vacation at France's private vacation home on a remote island. Little do they know that they won't be leaving anytime soon and will soon uncover the mysteries of the island.**  
**  
**Warning:** There will be pairings which includes...

GERxITA

SPAMANO

USxUK

FRAxJEA (Jeanne d'Arc)

ROCHU

HOLLxJPN (Holland)

PRUxHUN

DENxNOR

* * *

**Chapter 2: …To Hell**

The large group slowly treaded through the green thicket and slowly saw a large mansion rising from the horizon as they all gaped in wonder. Francis walked ahead of them, dusting the door handle before rummaging through his pockets.

"…Huh? That's strange…I'm sure I had my keys after we got off the boat," he patted down his pockets in vain. Jeanne quickly walked up to the door, a key sliding out from her sleeve and carefully unlocked the door. She sighed, smiling as she waved the key in front of the Frenchman's face, sliding it in his coat pocket and giving a pat. Alfred quickly rushed into the mansion, Arthur trying to hold him back with no avail as the overgrown child looked around the mansion's foyer. It seemed like something out of the children stories of kings and queens.

"Dude, this place is supposed to be a vacation house? It's a freaking palace!" Alfred dropped his bags to the floor and began running around the foyer, a glint of excitement in his blue eyes.

"Calm down already you bloody git," Arthur sighed in irritation, "But I do have to ask, where on earth did you come upon this place? I mean, it's a remote island—aside from that fisherman family—it's almost completely covered in a big forest and all."

"Hmm…I don't really remember much, mon ami," Francis contemplated, rubbing his stubble chin, "Do you, Jeanne?" She shook her head and shrugged her shoulders.

"In any case, you should all bring your stuff upstairs to your rooms. Choose any room on any floor you want but make sure you put a name plaque on the door so we know it's occupied!" Francis smiled at the group. They all nodded in agreement and grabbed their belongings, heading up the flight of stairs. Francis then looked around, Jeanne noticing that he stood his ground. Something was bothering him and he knew it—but what? The place looks the same since the last time he has been in the prestigious mansion.

"Is something the matter, Monsieur?" she asked with a worried expression. He snapped up from his thoughts and shook his head.

"N-non, it's nothing to worry about…I hope. You should go and catch up with Elizabeta," he suggested. She hesitated, pursing her lips but nodded and complied.

* * *

"Ve~ it's so big in here!" Feliciano smiled as he quickly dropped his bags and rushed for the mattress, plopping down onto it as it let out a slow hiss of air, "So comfortable!"

"Ja, ja, hurry up and unpack your stuff already," Ludwig rolled his eyes, walking towards the bed next to Feliciano's, setting down his large bag at the foot of the bed. He knelt down to unzip it and carefully rearranged his clothes. Feliciano, on the other hand, bounced towards his bag, unzipped it, and held the bag upside-down, letting the article of clothes falling onto his bed.

"All done! Now, I'll be looking around downstairs!" the Italian quickly left the room before being scolded by the German in the nick of time. He skipped about in the corridor towards the stairs and stopped as he saw an elevator shaft. He walked closer to it to find it quite worn out; cob webs covered it as spots of rust were everywhere, almost engulfing it. Curious, he pressed the button to see if it works. Nothing. He shrugged before jumping at the loud sound coming from downstairs. It sounded like something metallic being thrown against the wall, clattering to the floor. He looked over the railing to see nothing but darkness.

"Hello? Is anyone down there?" he shouted, only to hear his voice echo into oblivion. "That's strange…everybody is unpacking in their rooms so there shouldn't be anyone down there." Feliciano headed down the stairs slowly, a hand on the rail for support in the darkness. As he descended the last step, Feliciano looked around in the semi-darkness only to see the veil curtains flutter in the draft and briefly, just briefly, a shadow moving near the front door. He squint his eyes, scrutinizing the shadow. His honey eyes then widen as the shadow moved. It stopped for a second and seemed to have turned around, as if it noticed the Italian. Slowly, two bright red orbs appeared—its eyes. He couldn't feel his legs, the shadow of what it seems to be a silhouette of a human creeping up to him. As if something clicked in his head, Feliciano ran like the wind, the shadow chasing after him.

He didn't know where he was running; anywhere seemed fine as long as whatever is chasing him didn't catch him. Looking up ahead, Feliciano saw a closet door. He quickly wrenched the door open and softly closed it to avert any attention due to noise. Trying to calm down, he slowed his breathing. Suddenly, he felt faint, as if the energy from his body was being sucked out of him. From the crevices of the closet door, Feliciano saw the shadow looming nearby. He sucked in his breath, not daring to make a noise.

The Italian sat in the closet for what it seemed to be agonizing eternity, carefully watching the faint light streaming in from the crevices. No shadows have broken the light yet but there was still that dreaded aura in the air. He had no choice; he can't stay in the closet for long. Slowly, Feliciano opened the door, stopping as it creaked from age. He looked around. Left. Nothing. Right. Two glaring orbs staring at him. Doing what he does best, the Italian ran without hesitation, the entity letting out a distorted cry that echoed in the mansion. Without realizing it, he saw the entrance door in front of him. He tried to wrench it open but found it stuck but something was off. It felt as if something was pulling back on the other side of the door, disabling the frightened Italian from escaping.

_W-where? Where will I go?_

Immediately, a mental image of Ludwig appeared in his mind as he found himself running back to the room, banging on the door with his hands.

"L-LUDWIG! LUDWIG, OPEN UP! PLEASE! LUD—!" the door opened as the German was quickly on the floor from Feliciano's tackle. Ludwig watched in bewilderment as he saw Feliciano quickly locking the door, even the deadbolt.

"Feli—what happened?" Ludwig reached out for him as he realized his breathing was completely ragged. He grabbed Feliciano by the shoulders, turning him around from the door to see fear in the Italian's eyes. What on Earth did he see to scare him so much? Feliciano hugged the muscular German, burying his face in his chest. Ludwig carefully wrapped his arms around the slender man, trying to calm him down.

"Shh…it's alright. Try to calm down and tell me what happened."

* * *

Sorry for any grammatical errors, omissions, and whatnot...

This is a short one too...

Please review if you can!

More reviews equal more chapters!

Thank you!


	3. Chapter 3

So yeah...I'll try to update weekly (usually on Sundays).

More slight GerIta moments together.

* * *

**Chapter 3: Spirits**

Feliciano finally calmed down as Ludwig stroked his brown hair, the two sitting on the German's bed. He wiped the tears from his swollen eyes vigorously, flushing red.

"Feeling better?"

He nodded.

"Alright, then tell me what happened; why did you suddenly run downstairs then back up in a panic?" he asked slowly and carefully, making sure the Italian could answer as calmly as he can. "Take your time." Feliciano took a deep breath and let it out slowly. It seemed to have work.

"Well, I wanted to look around the house but then I heard…something being thrown downstairs. At first, I thought it was the others but I remembered that they went to their rooms to unpack their luggage. So I decided to go downstairs—"

"Wait, you actually went downstairs to investigate? You should learn a few things from Vash and Lily," Ludwig sighed in exasperation. "Don't you know that you shouldn't investigate something suspicious unarmed?"

"That's not it! I mean—wait…" Feliciano looked around the room, pulling away from Ludwig.

"…Feli?"

"...Ludwig...doesn't it seem...cold in here?" Now that he mentioned it, the room did indeed feel unusually cold. Strange, it's summer and it was quite humid outside before. Ludwig turned to look at the window. It was closed. He walked towards it, holding his hand up in front of it to see if there was a draft coming from the crevice. There wasn't. Suddenly, he felt uneasy.

"Ludwig..." Feliciano held his hands. He was shivering in fear, "Something is really wrong in this room."

"I hate to agree but I think you're right," Ludwig said. Then, out of nowhere, there was a large pounding sound coming from the closet. Feliciano squeaked, huddling closer to Ludwig in explicit fear. Ludwig brought the Italian's head to his chest as he looked at the closet. The cacophony continued for a few seconds before abruptly stopping. They looked at the door, alert and on their feet.

"...Stay here," Ludwig said, leaving Feliciano standing as the Italian looked at Ludwig with a worried expression, holding his hands close to his chest. The German slowly walked up to the closet and stood in front of it. He carefully grabbed the door to slide it open slowly. There, right in front of him were two glowing piercing white orbs glaring at him, suspended in midair of the darkness in the small confine closet. The sliding door burst open, a large shadow staring at the two. Feliciano screamed as it launched towards him. Ludwig quickly kicked it, only to see that his attack went right through the shadow. It stood erected, jerking about, and looked at Ludwig. It didn't have any characteristics aside from a large shadowy silhouette and bright white eyes that spelled trouble. It obviously wasn't human—it might not even be from this world.

Ludwig hid Feliciano behind him as they were about to be pinned to the wall from backing up. He quickly looked around the room and saw his lone pistol on the desk. If he ran for it now, he would be leaving Feliciano open to whatever is in front of them. If he doesn't act now, who knows what will happen to them?

"Ludwig!" Feliciano cried out to him as he ran pass the shadow and grabbing the gun. Without thinking, without hesitation, he quickly loaded the pistol and a shot rang out at the shadow. Just then, there was a sudden image flashing in his head.

_The bullet rang out of the gun, the shadow turning towards the direction of the sound. It went right past the shadow's body. Ludwig's eyes widened in horror as on the other side of the shadow was Feliciano._

The shadow let out a distorted cry as its abdomen blew up. It writhed in pain, glaring at Ludwig as he stared in surprise. It dropped down to the ground, a large black puddle of shadowy substance staining the floor. The German let out a sigh of relief as he saw Feliciano was safe and sound. The Italian carefully went around the puddle, eyeing it as if it would come back to life.

_As Feliciano stared at the puddle, bubbles started to form at the surface and it sprang back up, cloaking the defenseless Italian as Ludwig ran towards him._

He mentally shook his head from the strange image, heading towards Ludwig.

"...If this happened to us, do you think it might have happened to the others?" Feliciano asked, still staring at the substance. Ludwig pursed his lips.

"Probably but I sure hope not," he said, grabbing the Italian's hand, "C'mon, let's go check if everyone is alright." Feliciano nodded as the two left the room, the Italian looking over his shoulder at the disturbing shadow. Just as they left, he was sure he saw it moving.

* * *

The two walked downstairs and heard what it seems to be a door opening. Suspicious, they headed towards the source of the sound: the backyard door near the kitchen. They looked around the area, Ludwig looking at the glass door. There was a small crack on its surface. Feliciano, on the other hand, was wandering around in the kitchen.

"I wonder if they have any pasta here..." he muttered to himself. Ludwig gave him a look.

"...Out of all the things to think about, you think about your carbohydrates?" Ludwig rose a brow. Feliciano pouted, his cheeks becoming slightly rosy from embarrassment.

"I can't help it! If I don't have pasta at least once a day, I—" he stopped mid-sentence. Whenever the teen became silent, it made Ludwig feel uneasy, especially under these strange circumstances now. The Italian walked pass Ludwig, staring at the glass door leading to the vast backyard. He touched the crack that was on its surface. Surprisingly, it was warm.

"Hey Ludwig, touch this crack here," he beckoned him over. Ludwig sighed but complied, walking towards the door and placed his hand over the splinter. His blue eyes widened in surprise.

"...It's warm," he drew his hand away, "Maybe something cool was on it then it was heated? No...then what's the motive?" Ludwig continued to contemplate, mumbling to himself as the curious Italian peered outside the glass. He grabbed the handle and tugged it open, the wood creaking from age. Suddenly, a strong scent punched Feliciano in the stomach. He reeled back in the kitchen, covering half of his face with both hands.

"What's wrong?" Ludwig finally noticed his curious partner.

"This smell..." Feliciano looked down at the patio. There was a small dark red puddle right in front of the door. Ludwig held Feliciano's hand as they walked outside to the garden, closing the door behind them. The German veteran soldier knelt down and examined the small pool of crimson liquid.

"No doubt about it, this is blood. And judging by the looks of it, it's fresh," he noted. "Question is, who does it belong to?" He then shivered. Hopefully it wasn't one of the others. Feliciano pursed his lips, brows furrowing together as a worried expression was written across his face. There was a faint sense of dread in the air but it quickly heightened, making Feliciano uneasy. He gulped, trying to get the lump out of his throat. He immediately looked up when they heard a loud pounding sound coming from the door. Looking up, they saw multiple shadows crowding at the door, the glass exploding as the creatures burst out towards them. Ludwig got out his pistol, making sure Feliciano was behind him. He shot the shadow as it dropped to the ground, another shadow behind it. Feliciano let out a shriek as it came closer. It seemed to have aggravated the shadow as it lurched towards them with a bellowing cry. Ludwig grabbed Feliciano's hand and ran to the sides, shooting at it. The shadow ducked and swayed to the side, dodging the bullets. Ludwig quickly got out a small cartage of ammunition, reloading the gun as Feliciano tugged on his jacket, the shadow coming closer to them.

"Ludwig—!" Feliciano screamed as it was right in front of them, its arms about to wrap around the two. A shot rang out as Ludwig had the pistol in front of him, aiming it right at the shadow's head. The red eyes started to fade to black as the shadow melted into a puddle on the ground, Ludwig letting out a sigh of relief. He looked at Feliciano who seemed relieved as well...though he was still shaking.

"You okay?" Ludwig asked. The Italian nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine...I think." Feliciano then noticed something on the grass. He walked towards it, avoiding the black puddle, and knelt down. Picking it up, he held it up to the sun. "It's a...key?" It was obviously old, the rust made it look like it would break any moment. What made Feliciano's eyes widen in shock was that there was dried blood all over it. Was it linked to the pool of blood near the door?

"Since when was there a key there?" Ludwig was suspicious.

"...Maybe that thing dropped it?" Feliciano suggested, "I mean, look, it's covered in blood."

"It's not like we can conduct an analysis on the blood right now and compare it to the one at the door. The only thing I'm wondering is if that was holding the key, why did it have it in the first place?"

"Maybe it leads somewhere?" Feliciano looked around the backyard. The greenery seemed calm and serene but at the same time, there was an uneasy feeling of paranoia as it was completely dead silent outside. Not even a single bird's chirp to brighten up the mood. Ludwig sighed.

"Ja, that's the most logical and obvious answer," he retorted, crossing his arms, "There doesn't seem to be anything out here, so we might as well head back inside."

"Okay!" Feliciano smiled. Ludwig couldn't help but smile back faintly. Despite all the things that has happened, it was nice to see the Italian smile.

* * *

"I wonder where this key would lead to," Feliciano said, staring at the key in Ludwig's hand, both of them looking at it. Ludwig shrugged.

"Who knows. We should probably look for Francis or Jeanne and ask them—wait...what is that?" Ludwig halted. Feliciano tilted his head in confusion and looked up to where Ludwig was looking. There, just a few feet in front of them near the mansion's entrance, a young girl slowly walked towards the wall and disappeared within it.

"W-w-was—was that...a ghost?" Feliciano stuttered.

"T-there's no such thing as ghost! ...Then again, from what we've been seeing, anything could be plausible. What strikes me curious is if she was a ghost, why go through a wall just like that?"

"...S-should we check it out?" Feliciano was shivering. Ludwig nodded. The Italian let out a small inaudible whimper. Why does he have to be such a masochist? As the two headed towards the wall, Ludwig noticed something off about it. He stared at the pattern of the wallpaper intently. Something was wrong but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"...Huh? There's a slight..." Feliciano noticed that the faint stripes on the wall weren't aligned horizontal correctly. A whole section was off by an inch up. Leave it to the artist to notice a small mistake.

"Oh! Look!" he pointed at the wall. Ludwig looked and saw a small hole—a keyhole. He then backed up, scrutinizing the wall. He noticed that there was a very faint rectangular line—a door; the handle of the door being camouflaged by the wallpaper. Feliciano looked at the key in Ludwig's hand, then at the keyhole, then back.

"...Maybe the key opens it?" Feliciano suggested.

"...It's worth a shot." He placed the key inside and turned it. A small click echoed out. Ludwig slid the door open, much to their surprise as all they saw in front of them were stone stairs leading to a spiral darkness. Feliciano grabbed Ludwig's hand as the German lead the way, heading down the stairs. It seemed as if it was an eternity, the stairwell seemed to go on forever. Just then, Feliciano stopped, Ludwig looking behind to see him. Even though it was dark, he knew something was wrong.

"...Feli?"

"...We should head back...now."

"...Why—?"

"Just...we should just head back...something feels really bad down here..." Feliciano's palm grew sweaty. Ludwig hesitated but nodded. Just as they left, a faint sound could be heard—the sound of a girl giggling.

* * *

The two managed to find there way back to the entrance, the light hurting there eyes from the darkness.

"There you guys are! Cazzo, we were looking everywhere for you, freaking fratello!"

* * *

Gasp! Who could that be at the last line? (It should be pretty obvious)

I'm really sorry if they seem out of character...kinda hard to keep them in character when typing this kind of story.

OTL

Reviews are kindly welcome! \ ^ o ^ /

More reviews means faster updates (even I'm updating weekly unless something happens—)!


	4. Chapter 4

Gahh-this chapter is a tad bit shorter than it's originally suppose to be.

Sorry... x A x;;

* * *

**Chapter 4: The Necklace**

Feliciano turned towards the familiar voice, his eyes widening as tears formed at the corners. He ran towards the young man that looked similar to him, hugging him as he cried in relief.

"G-get off of me!" the other Italian protested, prying the younger one off.

"B-but you're okay, fratello!" Feliciano sobbed. Another man behind the Italian walked up, smiling.

"C'mon, Lovi, don't tell me you're not happy to see your younger brother!" the Spaniard walked up to the three, placing his hand on Lovino.

"I'm not happy," he bluntly retorted, pushing Feliciano away.

"Er...well I'm glad you guys are safe and sound," Antonio chuckled nervously, looking at Feliciano and Ludwig. The two looked at each other, then at the Spaniard.

"So you've seen it too?" Feliciano asked.

"Yeah, especially on the fourth floor," Lovino was glaring at the German next to his brother, "You haven't done anything strange to him, have you?" Ludwig blinked. Of course, Feliciano's brother didn't like the German at all but when he said that, there was animosity dripping in each word.

"No..." Ludwig raised a brow, sighing while crossing his arms. Lovino continued to stare at him before clicking his tongue. Antonio looked at Lovino as the Italian was eyeing the two.

"Anyways, we should probably head to the library—its the only safe place in this house," Antonio beckoned them to follow. As they walked about in the mansion, Lovino looked over his shoulder at his brother.

"What were you guys doing down there anyways?" he asked, curious.

"Eh? We found a key outside in the backyard, then we went back inside after seeing those shadow thingies, and we saw a girl in white walking towards the wall that was actually a door," Feliciano was contemplating, pressing a finger upon his lips. Lovino and Antonio stopped walking and looked at them, surprised.

"Wait...a girl in white?" Antonio then looked at Lovino.

"...We saw one too, just on the fourth floor—and that's where Alfred and Arthur's room is," Lovino said. They stood in the corridor silently before walking again towards a large double door, Antonio producing a key from his pocket and unlocking the door. The library was vast and spacious, bookshelves towering up to the ceiling, covering the walls, aisle by aisle. The marble floor was covered by a thick crimson carpet where a large battle ax was lying on the floor next to a large sleeping bag beside the large mosaic window.

"Well, this is it," Antonio gestured them towards their belongings with his usual carefree smile.

"Why is your sleeping bag and...weapon here in the first place?" Ludwig questioned.

"After we saw that girl near Alfred and Arthur's room, we decided that it wasn't safe to stay in our own room. As we were heading out, some weird black shadow thing got in our way and chased us around the mansion for a while until we got to the library," Antonio briefly explained.

"Right, and for some reason, once we passed the door of the library, it left us alone," Lovino added. He then sighed, "But we can't stay in here forever."

"I agree, nothing good will happen if we stay here," Ludwig nodded, "But how should we proceed? We're basically fighting against the paranormal."

"You haven't noticed it yet?" Antonio tilted his head in confusion. The others looked at him, bewildered. "Normal physical attacks don't work on them."

"...Now that you mention it, when we first encountered one of those shadows, I tried kicking it but my leg just went pass through it. The weird thing is, my gun works fine against it," Ludwig inquired, checking his gun. Only a few bullets left. Antonio chuckled.

"It's because of Feli over there," he smiled towards the boy. Feliciano blinked.

"M-me?" Feliciano was confused.

"You're wearing it, aren't you?" Lovino asked. Feliciano gasped and digged beneath his scarf to produce a necklace resembling a Baroque cross. Lovino did exactly as his brother, showing the same cross around his neck.

"Just as I thought, the necklace seems to have some sort of...'holy' attribute to it," Antonio said, "I guess it's what makes our attacks work—but only if we're at a close distance." Lovino crossed his arms. He looked around the library, the vast room filled with bookshelves surrounding them.

"Anyways, we took a little look around here but didn't find anything interesting—"

"Except this," Antonio produced an old parchment from his coat pocket, handing it to Ludwig as the German took it into his hands. Feliciano looked over his shoulder as he unfolded the paper, crackling noises from age echoed in the library. Their eyes widened.

"This is..." Feliciano started.

"...A map of the mansion?" Ludwig looked up at the two as Antonio picked up his battle ax off the floor, swinging it over his shoulders. He nodded and tossed Ludwig a box, the insides clattering with a familiar sound. Bullets. He looked up in bewilderment.

"Lovino found it lying around the mansion and thought we should keep it even though none of us has a gun with them—except you and possibly that childish American," the Spaniard smiled.

"Then shall we go?" Lovino suggested.

"Ah, are you guys going back out there?" Feliciano was worried. Lovino smirked.

"Like Macho said, nothing good will happen if we stay here." Feliciano frowned, looking to the sides. He then nodded.

"Then we'll go too, right Ludwig?" Feliciano turned towards him. Ludwig seemed speechless at Feliciano's bravery but chuckled quietly, nodding in response.

"Ja, we're going."

"We should check if Fuzzy Brows and Fatass are okay then since that's where the girl was last seen," Antonio said, waiting near the door. They all headed towards the door as the Spaniard opened it. Lovino peered out, looking left to right.

"Alright, the coast is clear." They left the library, carefully closing the large doors behind them. The group headed towards the stairs to the third floor, only to abruptly stop to see two shadows near the next flight of stairs.

"Should we just fuck them up or what?" Lovino stared at the silhouettes as they stood there, inhuman moans coming from them.

"Wait," Feliciano pulled on his brother's shirt, "Look." He pointed towards an open door.

"Maybe we can lure them in there?" the younger suggested. Lovino didn't say anything. He looked around to see a small plank of wood near his feet. Picking it up into his hand, he tossed it up in the air lightly and then looked at the open door. Quickly, he threw the wood at the open door, the piece bouncing into the empty room. Startled by the sound, the shadowy silhouettes quickly went to investigate, eager growls filling the air. They ran towards the door and slammed it shut, Antonio and Ludwig pushing the sofa from the corridor to barricade it.

"If they were able to break a thick glass door, who knows if they can break through this..." Ludwig backed up from the loud pounds. He grabbed Feliciano's hand as they were about to run upstairs until they saw one of the doors down the hall open by itself. On closer inspections, there was a name plaque on it—Francis. Antonio motioned them to follow him as they inched closer to the door. Instantly, an agile shadow sprung from the room, running towards the group. Feliciano let out a silent scream, caressing his head in his hands. Ludwig aimed his gun at the shadow and let out a shot. It missed. It was much faster than the previous ones as it was already behind Lovino before he even realized it. He gasped, turning around to see it about to engulf him in the dark body until Antonio came out of nowhere. The Spaniard slammed his ax down the shadow, splitting it in half. In the puddle of darkness, there laid a shiny golden key. Ludwig picked it up as Feliciano was behind him, looking at the liquid with a doubtful expression. Strangely enough, the key had a sunflower engraved on it. He mentally shrugged and shoved it in his pocket. Antonio was the first to go in Francis' room to find it a mess, everything was ripped to shreds, the walls showing evident claw marks.

"...There's no way he could have survived this..." Lovino clicked his tongue. His brother on the other hand looked around the room. Ripped up curtains fluttered in the broken window's breeze. He walked towards the window, examining it.

"What? Do you think he jumped out the window?" Lovino was behind his brother.

"Well, we're on the third floor right? That's kind of suicidal. Also, look," he pointed down to their feet. There were dozens of broken glass shrapnel from the broken window.

"...What are you getting at?" his brother asked.

"Ah...nice observation Feli," Antonio knelt down, staring at the shards. He carefully picked one up and held it up to the light. "Judging by the numbers of glass in here, I'm assuming that the window was broken from the outside."

"Which crosses out that Francis jumped out the window," Ludwig added. "The question is, where is he?" Then, there was a muffled scratching noise coming from the closet from across the room. Everyone stared in horror. Lovino hastily got a large fragment off the floor, defensively using it as a weapon. Feliciano then tilted his head.

"...Wait...do you hear that?"

Everyone was quiet. Silence.

"I don't here any—" Ludwig retorted.

"Shh...There!"

"_...elp...Help, sil vous plait!_"

The younger Italian rushed towards the closet, pulling it open to reveal Francis dropping out. The Frenchman blinked, then looked up at his rescue team.

* * *

"So that's what happened...You hid in your closet when you saw those...things from the window?" Antonio asked. Francis nodded.

"Oui, those monsters were lurking around outside and saw me. I didn't know what to do but hide in the closet," he sheepishly admitted. "But before I went back to my room, I was walking around the maison a bit and saw something strange." The others leaned in, listening intently.

"While I was on the fourth floor, I saw...une petite fille walking towards Alfred and Arthur's room."

"...Translation? We don't speak French," Lovino bluntly stated. Antonio chuckled nervously at the Italian's attitude.

"But I think we know what he's talking about. You saw a girl in white, didn't you?" Antonio asked. Francis nodded.

"Oui, mon ami—and what's really worrying me is that Jeanne is missing." Everyone blinked. "She went up to the fourth floor to check if Alfred and Arthur finished unpacking but never came back."

"Well that's just fucking great, we basically have to find everybody in this damn mansion," Lovino threw his arms behind his head, huffing. He then froze. His green eyes flashed towards the door, as did his brother's.

"There's..." Feliciano started.

"...Something there," Lovino ended. From outside, incoherent mumbles can be heard, accompanied by hungry growls that sent shivers down everybody's spine. Ludwig ran towards the doorway, grabbing the handle and slamming the door shut. Though he was thinking that it was useless, he ended up locking the door. Ravish poundings echoed from the other side of the door as the group inched back in fear. Suddenly, it all stopped. There was silence. Dead silence. The brothers seemed to have relaxed.

"...They're gone," Feliciano stated, holding onto his necklace.

"...Alright, we better find everyone first—then we have to find a way to get the hell out of here," Ludwig said. "I think one of us should lead Francis back to the library for safety while the other looks for the others."

"We'll bring Francis back then," Antonio stated. Ludwig nodded.

"Then Feliciano and I will look for Alfred and Arthur first."

"Ah, wait a second." Francis was digging through his slack's pockets. He produced a red key. Engraved on it was a familiar flower. A lycoris. "That key can open the door if its locked." Ludwig nodded and looked at Feliciano. The Italian seemed terrified at the whole situation but nodded with his usual cheerful smile.

* * *

Right outside the door, Ludwig tried opening it. It was locked. He got out the lycoris key that Francis had given him previously and unlocked the door, slowly opening it. The room seemed fine, everything was still intact. Opening the door further, they saw that the couple were nowhere to be found. As they walked in, investigating, the door suddenly slammed shut behind them. Feliciano tried to wring it open but it felt as if something was on the other side, holding it shut. Then, he heard a giggle. And it was close.

Slowly turning his head, he saw big gray eyes staring at him. He let out a scream, falling to the floor as the girl walked towards him with a maniacal smile. Her pallid face was contorted with insanity as she let out a spine chilling laughter. A shot rang out, hitting her in the head. She didn't move as the bullet seemed to have done nothing to her. The girl turned towards Ludwig, walking towards him. He let out another round. It hit her but something was wrong. It didn't do anything to her. Feliciano stared in shock and horror. The bullet didn't go pass her like a ghost. What is she?

"Get down!"

Immediately, Ludwig crouched down to the floor as he saw a blinding neon green light flash over his head towards the girl. She let out a high pitched shriek as the room was engulfed in a white light. Removing his arm away from his eyes, Ludwig saw that the girl was gone. He rushed towards Feliciano who seemed to be transfixed in fear.

"Feli...Feli!" he shook his shoulders. The Italian blinked, staring briefly at Ludwig before hugging him, burying his face in the German's chest. He sighed in relief, stroking the soft brown hair. He then looked over to see Arthur and Alfred standing about, a tome in Arthur's hand. The Briton sighed, snapping the book shut.

"C'mon, we should get out of here before she appears again."

* * *

Sigh.

I might upload more to it...if I feel like it.

OTL

Big shout out to _**grawrgrawrninja**_ for 'advertising' my story. XD

Thanks a bunch! :3

Please review if you have the time! 3

Reviews are greatly appreciated!

You know the drill: more reviews equals faster updates!


	5. Chapter 5

Okay, first of all, I'd like to apologize for not updating last week.

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood came out and well...you kinda get the idea. 8D;

Sorry, this chapter is kinda half-assed and rushed cause it's been bothering me for a while that I'm behind one chapter...

Anyways, big thanks to **_grawrgrawrninja_** for advertising for me! XD

You guys should read her APH fanfic **_Band Geeks_** too! It's really good and unlike my angsty and dramatic stuff, it's humorous! :D

Welp, here's chapter five!

By the way, keep this in mind:

Jeanne = Jeanne d'Arc or Joan of Arc

Abel = Holland

Matthias = Denmark

Lukas = Norway

I realized that Himaruya recently posted human names for some characters but I was too lazy to change them (plus, I like Matthias for Denmark...).

Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 5: Where Are They?**

Arthur led them towards the door and turned the knob. It wouldn't open. He grabbed it with both hands, trying to wring it open. Still wouldn't budge.

"Fucking—" he then tensed up, looking over his shoulder pass Alfred. Alfred turned around as well, his blues eyes widening.

"—Shit," he completed Arthur's sentence. Quickly, he got out twin handguns from his holsters and shot the door open. Behind them, the silhouette of the girl was appearing, a chilling giggle echoing in the room. They ran out of the room, Ludwig picking up Feliciano and slinging him over his shoulder as the Italian almost tripped.

Running.

All they can do is run.

* * *

Ludwig led them to the second floor where the library was and opened the door, pushing Feliciano inside and letting the blondes run in as Arthur fell on top of Alfred. The German quickly closed the door, locking it. Letting out a sigh of relief, he loosened up. Suddenly, the door in front of him pounded violently. He reeled back, almost tripping over his own foot and stared at the door, a cold sweat dripping down from his forehead. The pounding got louder and louder, escalating to what it seems to be the point where the door will be obliterated to pieces from the force. Then, it stopped. A chilling giggle made them all stiffen up.

"I'll be back..."

They all stared at the door, completely scared out of their wits. Feliciano then gasped.

"W-wait! Lovi, Antonio, and Francis aren't here!"

Even worse.

Another round of obscure violent poundings on the door made them all jump. What scared them even more was that it was accompanied by eerie scratching, as if someone that has long nails was clawing a chalkboard. Arthur blinked.

"...Open the door."

"W-what? That's suicidal!" Alfred protested. Arthur gave him a glare as he spun about.

"ONLY THAT FAG WOULD CLAW HIS WAY IN." The Briton rushed towards the door and grabbed onto the handle. Alfred froze.

_As Arthur opened the door, a large pair of hands burst into the room, grabbing the defenseless Briton. He struggled to get out of its grip as he was quickly pulled away into the darkness, his screams forever in the American's mind._

As he opened the door, he was tackled to the floor by the other group.

"GET. OFF!" he pushed them away as he stood up, brushing off the dust from his clothes.

"Then why did you lock the door?" Francis screamed, "We could have been killed!"

"Well who's fault is it to smash and scratch the door?"

"WHAT SHOULD WE HAVE DONE? 'Bonjour! It's Big Brother!'?"

"DO YOU WANT ANOTHER HUNDRED YEAR'S WAR?"

"Well, isn't this nice?" Alfred was smiling in the background with the others.

"Yes, it really kills the mood, huh?" Ludwig stared apathetically. Antonio was laughing at the scene as Lovino just stared with dead eyes. Just then, Alfred noticed that there was someone else standing besides the Spaniard. A familiar young blond girl. Jeanne.

"Jeanne! Where were you?" Alfred exclaimed. She looked up at the tall American, away from Francis and Arthur's bickering.

"Oh, they found me while we were heading here on the floor, unconscious. I'm glad they did, after all, we were chased by a black creature in the corridors," she stated.

"Oui, those shadows were chasing us again," Francis joined in.

"Finally settled things?" Antonio chuckled.

"Anyways, how did you guys know about the girl?" Ludwig addressed Arthur and Alfred. The Briton scoffed, crossing his arms.

"While we were unpacking our stuff, we heard a giggle," Arthur started.

"Yeah, then Arty told me about that and I thought he was hallucinating with his magical friends or something..." Alfred chirped in.

"They're real!" Arthur protested. "But that aside, we looked around and went downstairs to see a girl run towards a wall near the entrance."

"And we found a hidden door but it was locked. But, being the hero I am, I opened it with a paperclip I had in my pocket—"

"That's not very heroic," Antonio commented sarcastically.

"Shut it," Arthur growled. The others stared in bewilderment.

"Anyways, we found a staircase but Arty said that we shouldn't go down because it felt...off."

"Feliciano said the same thing," Ludwig remarked, looking at the Italian. He was staring at the door with distant auburn eyes. Ever since they saw the island, Feliciano has been completely out of it...then again, he's always scared and running away. But he has been able to see and predict where the shadows were, along with his brother. Guess being Catholics isn't a bad thing in this case.

"Sorry to jump off topic—sort of—I'll be frank, but have you noticed that something is wrong with not just with this manor but the entire island?" Arthur asked, his fingers digging into his arms. He looked uncomfortably away as Alfred placed a hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him down. "I mean, there's this...vibe coming from this island but I don't really know where..."

"...I agree. At first I thought it was the house but when Antonio and I were outside in the garden, there was still that heavy feeling of...dread," Lovino shivered. Antonio brought Lovino into his arms.

"I think it's obvious that we should escape this place...but first we have to find the others," Antonio stated. They all nodded in agreement.

"The only question is, where are they?" Francis asked.

* * *

As nightfall was about, Alfred was looking out the window of the library towards the glaring moon. He looked from his seat at the window sill to see almost everybody asleep, excluding Arthur and himself. The Briton was reading his tome and looked up to see Alfred staring at him.

"Shouldn't you go to bed by now?" Arthur whispered almost inaudibly as he quietly closed the tome and placed it next to him. Alfred shrugged.

"Someone has to be on night watch."

Arthur managed to let out a small smile but then frowned. Alfred tilted his head to the side in confusion.

"...Nothing." Alfred grimaced. He may be a bit dim but he knows Arthur well. A little too well. He quietly walked towards the Briton and sat next to him, wrapping his arms around him. Arthur buried his face into Alfred's shoulder, trembling.

"...We need to get out of here...before something bad happens...to you," Arthur's voice wavered through the muffles. Alfred blinked. Something bad happening to him? He stroked Arthur's soft blond hair, trying to calm him down.

"Nothing will happen to me," he pulled away to see Arthur staring down with a solemn look on his face. Alfred cupped the Briton's chin, their eyes meeting each other, "After all, I'm a hero—your hero." Arthur's cheeks became slightly rosy.

"...Git, that was corny."

* * *

Feliciano stretched when he woke up, letting out a yawn. He rubbed his eyes and looked around. Antonio and Lovino were talking near the window, Francis and Jeanne were immersed in a book they got from one of the bookshelves, and Alfred and Arthur were sleeping together, Arthur leaning on Alfred as the American's head was on Arthur's, under the window at the far end of the library. He looked around for his favorite German. Ludwig came out from one of the rows of shelves, walking towards Feliciano as he was awake. He rolled his eyes.

"Put on some clothes already. I don't get why you have to sleep naked every time, especially in this situation," he sighed in exasperation. He then looked at the two remaining sleepers. "When will those two wake up? I know Alfred was on night shifts but..." As if on cue, Alfred woke up, slowly opening his eyes and blinking. He wiped the dried drool from the corner of his mouth and carefully got Arthur off his shoulder. He let out a loud yawn and looked around.

"Ngh...what time is it?" he asked, rubbing his eyes before putting on his glasses.

"Like we would know; our cell phones are jammed so we can't get calls or even check the time," Lovino spoke up.

"Not to mention the clocks in here are old and don't work anymore," Francis said as he looked up from the book.

"But judging by the sun, I'm guessing it's early morning," Jeanne looked out the window.

"Well then, we should get going, right Lovi?" Antonio heaved his large battle ax over his shoulder. Lovino nodded as he headed towards the door. Feliciano jolted, a worried expression was quickly apparent on his face.

"W-wait! Where are you going, Lovi?" Feliciano stood up suddenly, running towards his brother and Antonio, grabbing onto his arms. Lovino pried his brother's hands off his arms with an irritated sigh.

"Even though it's safer for us to stay in a large group, our progress will be slow if we don't split up to search for the others," Lovino then looked at Antonio. The Spaniard nodded.

"Right; plus, I'm sure everybody here can defend themselves." Feliciano looked down in disappointment.

"...Just come back safely then," he trembled. Lovino rolled his eyes and lightly hit Feliciano's head with his fist.

"Fine. Well, we'll investigate outside in the gardens. C'mon Antonio!" Lovino rushed outside, Antonio following him.

"...Even though he told us to split up, I think we should investigate the manor in this group."

All eyes turned to see Arthur slouched on the wall beneath the window where he and Alfred were sleeping, staring blankly at the floor. He then looked up.

"If I'm correct, the only people missing are Kiku, Wang, Ivan, Gilbert, Elizabeta, Matthias, Lukas, and Abel," he stood up, brushing the dust off his black dress shirt and straightening his yellow tie.

"Although I don't want to say it, I agree with Arthur," Francis said, "Who knows what might happen if we split up? I think Lovino and Antonio will be fine though."

"Then it's decided that we'll all stick together, correct?" Ludwig asked. Everyone nodded. "Alright then, since we're already on the second floor, we should check out Kiku's room first." As they went out of library, Ludwig looked around the corridor to see if there were any of the strange creatures lurking about. There weren't any...yet. Quickly, they walked towards Kiku's room with a Chrysanthemum on the name plaque. Francis reached for the doorknob and twisted it. It was unlocked. He opened it wider and walked in, as did the others as they looked around. Right after Arthur, being the last of the group, walked in, the door slammed behind him. He immediately turned around and tried to open the door with no avail.

"...No good, it's completely locked from the other side," he sighed, giving up as he kicked the door in irritation.

"...But the door can only be locked from the inside," Jeanne remarked. Surely enough, they looked at the lock to see it open.

"I don't feel anything so it should be fine for now," Feliciano commented. Ludwig nodded and walked about in the room, looking around. Alfred opened the closet to find it empty, Arthur looking under the bed only to find dust, Jeanne looked out the window to see a normal scenery, and Francis was examining the bathroom.

"I guess they're not here," Jeanne stated as she let the curtains drop.

"Hold on a minute." Everyone looked at Ludwig as he knelt down near the window. He picked up a long blade—or rather, part of it. It was a broken katana—Kiku's katana.

"Shit...that can't be good," Alfred hissed. Then, they all froze as they heard a faint sound. The sound of bells chiming. They looked around, seeing nothing as the cacophony grew louder and louder before it abruptly stopped.

"AHHH!" Jeanne screamed as what it seemed to be a little girl was pulling on her wrist with excruciating force. Francis immediately lunged forward, drawing his rapier from his waist and slashed the girl. It didn't do anything. He gulped in fear as the masked girl wearing all red turned towards him. Suddenly, two other girls came from behind her, as if she was multiplying. They all drew out a hatchet from their robe's sleeves, holding it above their heads as they were about to strike. Alfred whipped out his handguns and shot the weapons out of their hands, in which they all gasped and looked towards him. They all started walking towards him before running in his direction. He ran towards the wall, running on it for a brief moment before kicking off of it, back flipping and shooting the girls on their backs. They let out a piercing scream before falling to the floor, disappearing in red particles. One of them struggled to survive, looking up at the group. Her mask fell off only to reveal a large red eye as her face staring at them. As she disappeared, Feliciano stiffened and turned towards the window.

"_I see you._"

They all turned to see the girl in white hovering at the window, the maniacal smile on her face as she giggled and started laughing like mad. Arthur held out his hand, a green light appearing as he chanted incantations quietly. She then glared at the group and disappeared before Arthur could finish.

"...What was that all about?" Ludwig was still slightly shaken by her appearance. Whoever she was, she was obviously the most dangerous out of everything they've seen so far in the manor.

"Who knows?" Arthur sighed as he held his head. "Damn wanker made me use up most of my energy." He then saw something on the floor. Alfred looked where he was looking and saw a shiny object on the floor, a key.

"Why do these things carry keys around with them? It doesn't make any sense," Alfred commented as he shoved the key in his pockets.

"...Wait...take the key out again," Francis said. Bewildered, Alfred did as he was told and showed Francis the key.

"...And the other keys that you guys found...don't you think it's strange that all the keys we've found are guest room keys? Specifically, keys to OUR rooms?"

"Except for this one," Feliciano took out the bloody key that leads to the basement. "This is the only one that doesn't lead to a guest room."

"...Anyways, Kiku and Abel aren't here so we might as well keep looking; there's nothing else in this room and I doubt we want to stay in this room any longer," Ludwig said. They all nodded and left the room. Just as they left, Alfred looked over his shoulder to see a girl in black looking at him with red eyes as she clutched onto her teddy bear.

* * *

Dun dun dun-

Who's the girl that Alfred saw?

Who knows? /shot

Anyways, yes, I added a tidbit of USxUK in there for the giggles (and because they're my OTP).

I'll try to update chapter 6 **THIS** weekend (if possible)!

Sorry if there's any delays...finals are coming up...

Welp, that's it for now!

You guys know the drill: review and I'll update faster!

Don't forget to read _**grawrgrawrninja's**_ fanfic, **_Band Geeks_**!


	6. Chapter 6

Okay, **BIG SORRY** for not updating like I said so.

Finals came up (not that I was THAT worried about it).

And I currently have a really bad flu.

So yeah...I'm sick. OTL

Sorry for the inconvenience guys! :(

* * *

**Chapter 6: Where...?**

The group decided to go up the third floor where Wang and Ivan were residing, hoping that they were still there—alive. Ludwig noticed that they haven't ran into any of the strange creatures in the corridors...yet.

"Are they nocturnal?" he muttered out loud. Feliciano tilted his head to the side in confusion, his curl bouncing as they walked.

"What do you mean?"

"Those shadows. We've ran into those weird girls but not those shadows that chased us around yesterday," Ludwig was contemplating.

"I guess it would make sense if they're nocturnal," Francis shrugged. Though they seemed languid when talking, they knew that anything could happen at anytime. Arthur was especially on the edge. He was constantly looking around, staying behind the group, much to Alfred's confusion. The American couldn't help but keep looking over his shoulder to see Arthur looking around frantically, as if he was looking for something. As they walked towards the Russian's room, Arthur stopped in his tracks and froze. He heard something familiar. A child's giggle.

"Arthur." He jolted up from Alfred's touch and looked up at the American's face. "Are you alright?"

"...I'm fine. C'mon, let's go," he walked passed Alfred. Alfred sighed.

"What's wrong with that guy?"

They caught up with the rest of the group and stopped in front of the designated room. Jeanne reached for the door and turned the knob. At the crevice of the opened door was a shining purple eye staring at them.

"Yonda?"

Literally, everyone's reaction was either screaming at the top of their lungs or backing up in surprise to the opposite wall. The Russian chuckled innocently as he opened the door, behind him was Wang, looking quite surprised and trying to stifle a laughter. The Chinese man invited them in the room, Ivan locking the door once they were all in.

"I can see how you guys managed to survive," Francis remarked, chuckling nervously, inching away from the tall Russian.

"Anyways, I'm guessing you know the situation?" Ludwig asked. Wang nodded.

"Yes, we do."

"Oh, by the way, we saw Kiku and Abel outside just a few moments ago from the window. I think they were heading for the gardens, I couldn't get a good view so I can't be sure," Ivan chirped in. Feliciano looked up in surprise.

"K-Kiku?" he asked astonished, "So he's okay!"

"I wouldn't be so—" Arthur then grunted in pain as Francis elbowed him in the ribs.

"Alright! Then let's go and get them back to the library!" the American exclaimed excitedly, throwing a fist pump in the air. As Alfred and Feliciano ran out of the room, the others looked at one another.

"...Those kids..." Ludwig sighed. The others just chuckled. They headed out of the room to see Feliciano and Alfred standing about, motionless. Feliciano then looked towards the end of the corridor with a troubled look on his face, a cold sweat dripping from his chin along with a stifled gasp.

"Something's here..." he kept his voice hushed. Wang slowly walked towards where the young Italian had his eyes fixed to, looking around in the darkness.

"There's nothing—!" the Chinese man was on the floor with a loud thud, a silhouette can be seen on his back. Ivan quickly got out his metal faucet pipe from his large jacket and threw it towards the figure. It disappeared before the pipe could hit it. The Russian rushed towards Wang, getting him up as everybody was tense from whatever is attacking them. Suddenly, they all staggered as something fell behind them. Turning around, they saw a girl in black with piercing red eyes staring at them in a crouched position, about to pounce on them. Ludwig whipped out his pistol and let out a shot, only to see that she disappeared once more.

"Up!" Alfred shouted to see the girl crawling on the ceiling. He took out his double handguns and shot her just in time before she disappeared. Falling to the ground, the girl looked at them before sinking into the ground.

"...Is it over?" Jeanne asked. Before anybody could answer, Arthur turned around just in time, tome in hand, and whacked the thick book at the girl. She fell to the floor with a yelp. Slowly sitting up, she began crying quietly, her face now enshrouded by her curly black hair. Her cry then intensified. Feliciano grabbed onto Ludwig's hand, looking around.

"...There's something else coming...I think it's the girl in white," he said. Ludwig nodded and placed his gun in the holster.

"Alright, then we better head for the gardens." Everybody rushed downstairs, Alfred looked over his shoulder. It was the same girl he saw before. He stopped and continued to stare as she picked her head up, her eyes filled with tears. The sudden feeling of guilt overcame him as he walked towards her but was stopped by Arthur who grabbed his arm.

"What are you doing? We got to look for Kiku and Abel!" Arthur yelled at him. He then briefly stopped. "...Wait...what's that noise?" Alfred looked back at the girl to see something coming from behind her in the distance. His blue eyes widened. He grabbed Arthur's hand and ran the opposite direction, much to Arthur's surprise. Arthur staggered to keep up, resulting in Alfred to pick him up and carrying him over his shoulder. As they fled, Arthur saw the girl in black reaching out towards them in immense sorrow, mouthing something he couldn't make out of.

They finally caught up with the group in the kitchen, panting for air.

"Where were you guys?" Francis asked, surprised at their entrance. Alfred was the first to pick his head up from doubling over and promptly stood up.

"We had a contest!—"

"You wanker, there's no time for your comedian sense of humor! That girl is back and she's not far behind!" Arthur yelled.

"Aw...I wanted some pasta..." Feliciano whimpered.

"Seriously, how can you think about that in this situation?" Ludwig rolled his blue eyes. The Italian let out a cheerful giggle. He was just too cute to resist. All the more reason for Ludwig to worry about him—to protect him. "Anyways, we should hurry to the garden." They all nodded.

Upon entering the backyard, they saw a beaten path leading to large hedges of lush greenery in front of them—a maze. How fancy.

"...How should this be handled?" Jeanne asked, examining the tall hedges with roses of various colors blooming about.

"We should still stick together, the last thing we want to do is split up," Francis said.

"Are they even beyond the maze?" Arthur asked.

"It's a high possibility; not much is in the gardens aside from this maze and the forest." Ivan then looked around, piquing Wang's attention.

"What's wrong?" the Chinese man asked.

"...Nothing...I thought I heard something. Must have been the wind," the Russian shrugged, "Shall we go now?" And so they went into the hedged labyrinth. Upon entering it, they were surrounded by dark green bushes; the roses gave off faint luminescent light from the fading sun. Looking around, the group felt as if they were in another world.

"Feels like something from a fairy tale, don't you think, Ludwig?" Feliciano then looked away from the sky to see that he was alone. Sudden fear got a hold of him as he felt tears welling up at the corners of his eyes.

"L-Ludwig? Ludwig!" Feliciano started running about in the maze, screaming out the German's name. "LUDWIG!" The Italian was about to give up, falling to his knees but shook his head and smacking his cheeks.

_Got to stay focused!_

As he continued to head towards what he thinks is the exit of the labyrinth, he heard shuffling behind him. Quickly turning around, he saw nothing but was tense. The bone chilling giggle echoed in the area. As if that wasn't worst, he could have sworn that he heard a scream in the distance. His walking pace quickly hastening to a semi-run, Feliciano found an opening of the maze. Sudden relief made him smile as he ran towards it before being stopped by two large eyes appearing right in front of him. The girl laughed as Feliciano fell back in horror and surprise, the scream unable to escape his trembling lips. Scrambling to get back up, Feliciano ran back, even running through the thick hedges. It was better than being caught by whatever that girl is. He saw shimmering daylight in front of him, as well as two silhouettes. As they came into view, the voice that was locked in his throat finally came back to him.

"Kiku!"

"Feliciano-san, get down!" the Japanese man said. Feliciano did as told but on accident; the Italian tripped over his own foot, landing on the grass and looked up to see Kiku throw a small rectangular paper towards the girl that was about to lunge towards them. It was attached to her, much to her confusion as she tried to pry it off her arm. The tall Dutch man cracked his knuckles and ran towards her in a zigzag motion, punching her away. She let out a high pitched yelp, along with an infuriated—inhuman—growl that made them flinch. The girl ripped a rose away from the bushes and threw the petals towards Kiku, Abel quickly picking up the slender man and jumping away from the flowers that pierced the ground. The petals started to corrode away as they landed, a strange hissing sound can be heard from them as they melt away. Acid? Septic poison? Either way, it was lethal.

"Feli!"

The Italian looked towards where the voice said his name to see Lovino jumping out of the bushes, a large spear in his hands in the shape of a Baroque cross over his head. The girl was then pierced in the abdomen by the spear. Lovino stared in shock as she didn't flinch. Not one bit. She stared at him nonplussed in innocence before her face being contorted in maniacal rage. Antonio quickly picked the Italian into his arms as the cross vanished and ran towards his brother.

"Why didn't that work?" Lovino muttered to himself as he held onto his necklace. Did his necklace somehow transform into the spear? "You're okay, right?" Feliciano nodded.

"Where are the others?" Antonio asked.

"I-I think they're still inside the maze..." Feliciano said, his voice wavering. Just then, a familiar green light shot from the maze towards the girl as she screamed. As it subsided, she was still there but seemed to be blinded as she continuously rubbed her eyes. They looked to see the others near the maze. Ludwig rushed towards Feliciano, pulling him up.

"C'mon, we're going back to the library!"

* * *

They all made it back to the library before nightfall, hearing incoherent gurgles from the other side of the library door as the moon was waning for the large windows. Alfred walked away from the window and towards the group huddled in the middle of the spacious library, sitting down next to Arthur and Francis.

"Those shadows are patrolling around lately tonight...I think it's best we stay in here for now," he said.

"But what about the others? We're still missing Gilbert, Elizabeta, Matthias, and Lukas," Wang said.

"They'll be fine," Abel scoffed, flickering his lighter on and off.

"Says the druggie," Arthur retorted. Abel gave him a deadly glare. Don't mess with the Dutch.

"Only four people are missing...not bad, but it would be better if we were all here," Ludwig said. He then looked up towards Lovino and Antonio, "How were your investigations in the forest?"

"We made it towards the end of the forest—we could see the ocean from the horizon—but there seems to be a small entrance way at the bottom of the cliff that's blocked off by some strange...force," Antonio explained vaguely.

"Right, when we tried to enter the cave, we were pushed away from some force. Something is definitely there though...it may be linked to the basement too," Lovino explained further. The Spaniard nodded.

"Lovi said that there's the same feeling of dread from the basement emitting from the cave...only more powerful."

"How so?" Kiku asked.

"Before we could get to that, I'd like to go a little off topic," Ivan interjected. Everyone stared at him but nodded. "I realized that we've mostly been grouped into two, such as Wang and myself. That aside, it seems that one of the two is a...spiritual mediator in a way as the other is channeled to him or her."

"...What?" Alfred was confused.

"To dumb it down for you, let's take you and Arthur for example; Arthur has the ability to sense and, surprisingly, defend himself from the shadows via magic. You on the other hand, are able to attack the shadows with your guns because Arthur is near you and is somewhat channeling his spiritual power to you."

"Ah, I think you mentioned this before, Antonio," Ludwig addressed the Spaniard as he nodded.

"Yeah," he merely said as he looked towards Lovino who was starting to doze off from the meeting. He chuckled quietly.

"EEP!" Lovino squeaked suddenly as he felt something in his pocket vibrating. He sat up from Antonio's shoulder and got out his cell phone. "...It's working?" He stared at the screen to see the caller I.D. It was from Emma. He quickly unlocked it and pressed the answer button, pressing the phone close to his ear.

"H-hello?"

"Oh! You finally picked up! I was worried! Where are you guys? I've been trying to contact all of you after the meeting but it seems as if all of your phones have been jammed..." the feminine voice blabbered in evident worrisome. Abel let out a small smirk and extended his hand towards Lovino. He handed him the phone.

"Yo. We're fine, just at some haunted ass vacation home of Francis'."

"Haunted vacation—what are you talking about?"

"Like I would know; paranormal shit is going down right now."

"Well, are you guys okay?"

"As of now, yeah, we're all fine...except we're missing four people from the group of poor tourists."

"WHAT? Who?"

"That albino dude, the pretty Hungarian, and the two Nordic guys," Abel then saw Antonio asking for the phone. He gave the Spaniard a, 'Are-you-fucking-kidding-me' look but complied, "Hold on, the Spaniard wants to talk to you."

"Emma? Thank goodness we still have communication from the outside now...Can you call the others?"

"Others?"

"I don't know...Roderich, Vash, anybody!"

"I'll try...But you guys better make it back alive—" the line was then cut off. Antonio slowly slipped the phone away from his ear and stared at it before handing it back to Lovino.

"That's strange...our phones weren't working before," Lovino remarked.

"And they're not working now," Jeanne stated as she showed them her screen. It was blinking the 'no signal' symbol. Sighing, the group decided to call it a day, resting as the growls of the paranormal were right outside the large double twin doors.

* * *

Sorry for the short chapter! OTL

I'm actually thinking of putting _Curse of the Spider Lily_ on hiatus too...

New APH fanfic in mind that **grawrgrawrninja** is BEGGING (okay, not really but you get the idea) for me to upload.

I think she mentioned it before in her recent chapter of _Band Geeks_ (read it...NOW); It's called _House of Cards_.

I'm debating whether I should or shouldn't. XD

A little tidbit on it; It's a fantasy style of APH basically with the usual angsty situation. The fanfic is also split up into four arcs and I'm planning for a sequel! (If I ever get the time)

After all, it was a fanfic I typed on my cellphone during nights I can't sleep... OTL

Oh yeah, little update-thing: I won't update chapters unless I get **10** new reviews! (Idea by **grawrgrawrninja**; also due to the fact I upload my chapters late at night so I think I don't get that many readers...)

Well, medication is taking affect...G'night people!

Also...**MERRY CHRISTMAS!**


End file.
